Ch 33 The Great War The Drift Toward War. The Alliances: Triple Alliance Triple Alliance= Germany,...
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Transcript of Ch 33 The Great War The Drift Toward War. The Alliances: Triple Alliance Triple Alliance= Germany,...
The Alliances: Triple Alliance
Triple Alliance= Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy
Franco-Prussian War
• German victory under Bismarck's leadership
• Peace treaty imposed policies isolating France
Bismarck's alliance with Austria-Hungary
• A-H's expansion into Balkans conflicted with Russia
• "Europe's Central Powers" joined in a defensive military alliance
Italy joins the Central Powers' defensive military alliance in 1882
• France seized Tunisia thwarting Italian plans
• The Triple Alliance was complete
Weaknesses
• Italy's historic enmity for Austria-Hungary
• Italy's desire for remaining Italian-inhabited Austrian territories
The Alliances: Triple Entente
Triple Entente= France, Russia, and Britain
The common enemy: Germany
• Germans took the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine
• Germany refused to renew its treaty of friendship with Russia
The Dual Alliance, 1894
• France gained Russia's confidence through extending military and industrial loans
Germany also threatened Britain's industrial leadership and colonial empire
Britain had conflicts with both France and Russia
• Britain clashed with France over control of the Sudan
• Britain had conflicts with Russia over spheres of influence in Persia and China
The compromises made between the three completed the Triple Entente
The Alliances
The two alliances divided Europe into two opposing armed camps
Competing alliances represented a roughly equal balance of power
• Advocates argued it was an effective method of guaranteeing peace
• Critics argued that the existence of alliances would eventually lead to war
Crises Preceding WWI
Moroccan Crises of 1905 and 1911
• Germany challenged France's influence in Morocco
• Germany challenged France's attempt to convert Morocco into a protectorate
Impacts:
• Diplomatic setbacks for Germany
• Drew France and Britain into closer alliance
• Intensified hostility between the Entente and the Central Powers
Balkan Crises of 1912-1913
• With Russian approval, four Balkan nations warred against, defeated, and seized territories from Turkey
• Austria intervened to force the creation of Albania, denying Serbia an outlet to the Adriatic Sea
Impacts:
• Brought Russia and Serbia closer together
• Intensified Austria-Hungary's hatred of Russia and Serbia
Immediate Cause of WWI
The assassination of the Austrian Archduke
• Serbian nationalist assassinated Francis Ferdinand in a plot to break up Austro-Hungarian Empire
The assassination sparked a chain reaction leading Europe into World War I
A Chain Reaction1. Austria made harsh demands on Serbia for the murder
2. Serbia refused to comply with the demands
3. Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia
4. Russia, a Slavic nation and friend of Serbia, mobilized its troops
5. Germany declared war on Russia and its ally France
6. Germany invaded Belgium to enter France more easily
7. Britain declared war on Germany